5 Success Myths That Are Holding You Back

There’s tons of advice out there on how to become successful, but some of this advice may actually hold you back from accomplishing great things. There are myths surrounding success. It’s hard to be successful until some of these myths are debunked.

There are many misconceptions people have about success. These ways of thinking are holding you back from doing what’s necessary to do something that matters.

Here are five myths that are holding you back:

1. Talent doesn’t matter

Of course it does. We’ve all heard sayings like, “hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.” That’s not always the case. If you’re five foot three it doesn’t matter how hard you work, you’re probably not going to play in the NBA.

It’s important to discover your strengths. Focus on what you’re good at. Hard work will push you past people who don’t work as hard as you do, but only if it’s in an area you’re suited for.

2. You have to be humble

You’re told to be humble and modest. You’re told not to draw attention to yourself because it makes you look arrogant. This form of humility is called outward humility.

Most people are humble on the outside but selfish on the inside. On the outside they appear modest but on the inside they are selfish because they think they deserve more than what they have but they aren’t willing to work for it. They will complain and wish their circumstances will change but they aren’t willing to change themselves.

Real humility comes from within. Inner humility comes from doing work. It comes from taking the time to learn and develop yourself. It comes from putting in the necessary hours and paying the price. If you’ve taken the time to improve yourself then you should be confident in your abilities.

“Success comes to those who dedicate everything to their passion in life. To be successful, it is also very important to be humble and never let fame or money travel to your head.” – A. R. Rahman

3. Positive thinking = success

There’s a documentary called “The Secret,” and the premise of it is that all you have to do is visualize the things you want and the universe will find a way to deliver them to you. Want a new car? Place a picture of that car on your wall and visualize having it and then BOOM, you’ll have a new car.

Positive thinking is necessary, but it’s only powerful when combined with actual effort.Don’t be fooled into thinking that simply wanting success will make it a reality. Everybody wants success, but few people are willing to do the work it takes to be successful.

4. Knowledge is power

Learning opens new doors for you. The statement “knowledge is power,” is almost correct. The application of knowledge is power. It’s great to read dozens of business books, but they can’t substitute for building a business in real life. If you want to be successful, take the knowledge you’ve gained and put it to practice.

5. Fear can be conquered

You’ve been told that you have nothing to fear but fear itself. You’ve been told that you can will your way into feeling no fear. Fear never goes away, but you can learn to take action in the face of fear. You don’t necessarily defeat fear, but you work alongside it, letting it push you and keep you on your toes.

“I’m not saying that everyone should swim with sharks, but sometimes you have to jump over your own shadow in order to learn something that you will never forget for the rest of your life. Then you know you can conquer your fears.” – Heidi Klum

What are you going to do today to inch your way closer to successes? Don’t let the myths surrounding success hold you back from living the life of your dreams. Feel the fear and take action.

Use your knowledge to start taking the necessary steps to reach your goals. Build a life around your talents and strengths and have the confidence to shine brightly because you know who you are, what you want, and where you’re going.

Which myth is holding you back? Please leave your thoughts in the comment section below!

Ayodeji is the founder of The Destiny Formula website and author of the Amazon best selling book The Destiny Formula. He is a lifelong learner who is passionate about using words to liberate and enlighten his peers.

2 Comments

Hey Ayodeji, You hit the right chord with this article, I completely agree with the that “being humble” point. Obviously, no one can be humble 24×7. We all are human, and it’s completely fine to act like one. Success doesn’t make us perfect.

And, yes that “Law of attraction” part is funny. I feel we share same concern regarding that Law. In fact, i have a whole article on this best selling Law of our time with the name “My interview with THE LAW of attraction” on my blog. Feel free to check it out in your free time and to share your feedback.

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Why It’s So Important To Break Out Of Your Comfort Zone

So I completed a Snake Handling course 6 years ago and during the final test of the course, we were asked to capture and bag 5 of Australia’s Deadliest snakes in a small confined room. The room had a Tiger Snake, Dugite, King Brown, Death Adder and a Red-Bellied Black Snake all slithering around at the same time. I couldn’t believe what I had got myself into.

Snakes were one of the biggest fears of mine. I would imagine a snake running underneath my feet from time to time and I would actually bring my feet up off the floor to avoid getting entangled or bitten by these imaginary snakes I had created in my mind. I would even have nightmares about snakes biting me and it would wake me up in sweats in the middle of the night.

I could have never imagined doing this in my life but I did it because I knew that I had to get passed this ridiculous fear I had of snakes, and I am grateful I was able to show up for it.

Checkout this podcast episode where I share how You can Master your Sub Conscious Programming around your fears in 2 Steps:

“What Are Your Top 5 Fears?”

– Public Speaking

– Cancer

– Sharks

– Snakes

– Heights

Were at the top of the list for most people.

The instructor carried on with a story of how he had just arrived back from a trip to the Northern Territory of Australia to visit an aboriginal community where he had met a 7-year-old boy who was absolutely scared to death of spiders and the dark.

It did not matter what kind of spider it is, he was scared and that was that. This boy would hunt crocodiles and lizards but was scared of even the non-venomous spiders.

All he had learned from a very young age was that spiders are dangerous and that they WILL kill you, yet the crocodiles and snakes that the boy would play with and hunt for are by far more deadly than most spiders that your everyday human would come across.

He was taught between the crucial years of 1-6 yrs old that the dark is full of evil happenings and that spiders are incredibly deadly and will kill him if he goes anywhere near them. So he was devastated to sleep in the dark and would jump on near by people just to get away from a spider nearby.

I’m not here to say that spiders aren’t dangerous, they are, and some out there have the potential to kill you. This boy was right to be cautious around spiders but where he lacked knowledge, or the right information about these creatures, eventually left him fearful of something he had never really understood.

This boy is just an example of many other people out there that are limited by their fears because of the little that they know. The less you know, the more fearful you are. This is only human and we are naturally scared of the unknown.

So the key thing here is we need more “KNOWLEDGE!” and it is in our best interest to want to understand how things work if we want to become less fearful of what the wild and wonderful world we live in has to offer.

You have to “EXPERIENCE” things to have a better understanding of the activity or whatever it is you are most scared of.

Joel Brown – Certified Snake Handler

When you increase your knowledge you can grow to the level where your fear is set at, so when the two meet it creates a level called “RESPECT”.

This is the perfect level to be on because you will now have a respect for what you fear which will allow you to then work with it rather than being submissive and missing out on the wonderful feeling of successfully OWNING!the outer areas of your comfort zone.

Everybody has a fear of some sort and learning more about what you fear and even voyaging through your ‘un-comfortable zone‘ will prepare you for the hard knocks in life on your road to success.

I have a few more fears to conquer myself and I am happy to say that I have crossed ‘Snakes’ and a number of other top things off my list. I’m sharing this story with you in hopes that you too will face at least one or two of your fears. Not to say that “you did it“, but to prove that you can outgrow your own personal limitations.

Your fears could be holding you back, they could even be the final piece you need to experience a brand new lifestyle or a brave new world of fun.

So get out there, learn more and grow!

No matter the storm, may your Faith be stronger than your Fears – Joel Brown

Feature Image Original Source: Indiana Jones – Raiders Of The Lost Ark